Recovery of scandium, yttrium and lanthanides from zircon sand

Patent · Tue Aug 13 00:00:00 EDT 1991

OSTI ID:5637388

Feuling, R J

This patent describes a process for extracting scandium from ore comprising zirconium silicate. It comprises feeding scandium-containing zircon ore to a fluidized bed chlorinator at 800{degrees} C-1250{degrees} C to produce a vaporous phase, the vaporous phase principally comprising zirconium and silicon chlorides, and to produce a solid scandium-containing residue; and recovering the scandium as a compound from the solid residue, whereby the very low level of scandium present in zircon ore is concentrated in the residue, making recovery of scandium from the zircon ore economically feasible.

• Assignee: Westinghouse Electric Corp., Pittsburgh, PA (United States)
• Patent Number(s): US 5039336; A
• Application Number: PPN: US 7-292035
• OSTI ID: 5637388
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

37 INORGANIC, ORGANIC, PHYSICAL, AND ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY
400105* -- Separation Procedures
400202 -- Isotope Effects
Isotope Exchange
& Isotope Separation
ELEMENTS
METALS
ORE PROCESSING
ORES
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PROCESSING
RARE EARTHS
SCANDIUM
SEPARATION PROCESSES
SILICATES
SILICON COMPOUNDS
TRANSITION ELEMENT COMPOUNDS
TRANSITION ELEMENTS
YTTRIUM
ZIRCONIUM COMPOUNDS
ZIRCONIUM ORES
ZIRCONIUM SILICATES